Dirt moving for senior apartments

The three-story, 79,000-square-foot building with 72 apartments will be open to residents 55 and older.

Amanda Memrick

Thanks to a reader’s watchful eye, I learned dirt has started turning to make way for the Montcross Senior Living Apartments.

The three-story, 79,000-square-foot building with 72 apartments will be open to residents 55 and older.

Sue Moody of Laurel Street Residential, the developer of the project, tells me construction crews are working on the foundation now.

Moody anticipates the apartments being finished by the end of 2013, so residents could move in at the first of 2014. They’ll officially start taking applications in late summer or early fall, but Moody said she already has a list of people who are interested who will be contacted first. If you want to get on that list, give the folks at Laurel Street a call at 704-561-5225. Moody is at extension 251.

The Southern Benedictine Society of North Carolina owns the land, which is located behind the Abbey Plaza Shopping Center that houses Roses and Big Lots. It owns the land where those businesses are located, too. The Southern Benedictine Society is the corporation formed by the Benedictine monks at Belmont Abbey in 1926.

Rental rates will be based on income. Monthly rent for a one-bedroom would range from $294 to $695. Two-bedroom apartments would range from $357 to $675.

That makes the rent fall in line with what average Belmont seniors should be paying, which is about $589 each month if they follow affordability standards. They say housing shouldn’t be more than 30 percent of your income.

Notice anything new in the business landscape lately? Business reporter Amanda Memrick wants to hear from you. Call me at 704-869-1839, send an email to amemrick@gastongazette.com or send a tweet shout out to @AmandaMemrick on Twitter.